"Make a place to sit down.
Sit down. Be quiet.
.......
Breathe with unconditional breath
the unconditional air.
......
Accept what comes from silence.
Make the best you can of it."
Just a few lines from Wendell Berry's poem "How to be a Poet".
Grandmothers in their wisdom find time to sit in the warmth of the sun and watch the world go by.
Cats make a place to sit down in the most impossible of places....
and still they manage to look comfortable as they observe the world around them.
There needs to be more time for sitting in silence and just being in this world.
and still they manage to look comfortable as they observe the world around them.
There needs to be more time for sitting in silence and just being in this world.
silently i concur,
ReplyDeleteand sometimes that's all there is.
k.
In the evening, when I take the dog out, I stand and look at the stars. Initially I think..awesome silence. Then, I REALLY listen. Why isn't the night quiet as it was when I was young. The distant sound of traffic, the train going down the nearby track, a siren in the distance. I long for the quiet night when you could only hear the crickets and frogs....
ReplyDeletethe words about the cat...
ReplyDeleteand healing thoughts
lov e you
YES! I have a friend who is known to say, "stand up for lying down!".
ReplyDeleteBeautiful quote and so very meaningful to me. Love walking all alone - just me and the world around me. I also love standing outside at night, looking above at the miracle of the stars and a bright moon. It 'puts me in my place' which is very, very small!
ReplyDeletewhen i was a bit younger i used to bushwalk alone, sometimes for days. just me and Nature, there's nothing quite like it.
ReplyDeleteWendell Berry is one of my favorites...a voice of reason in a very unreasonable world. Sometimes the only way to reason is in silence.
ReplyDeleteReading your words has reminded me of the only time I could tolerate school. Every now and then we would be forced into what they called a retreat for one or two days. It meant no classes, no speaking, just permission to wander in the gardens in contemplation ... and they probably expected prayer too.
ReplyDeleteIt's up to us to take the time for silence and reflection and make the world a better place for doing that. Thanks for your images and poem as a reminder.
ReplyDeleteIn light of the recent events in the world, your post is a great reminder of how much we need to just be. Great post Penny.
ReplyDelete